born in salford, greater manchester, uk, on july the 5th, 1986, simon was the first-child of and son to rory and paula riley. simon had little time as an only-child, as the following year on august the 21st, tommy riley is born - albeit one month premature. this meant paula's time was largely taken up by tommy, due to him needing additional care post-birth and this often left simon vulnerable to his father's attention. due to him being too young, simon wasn't developed enough to understand the situation, meaning the two brothers would come to be raised with minimal jealousy or competition with there only being a year between them.

however, as simon aged, it became glaringly obvious to paula that something was different about him, in comparison to other children and to tommy. while tommy started talking just after two years old, simon didn't until he was past four and a half - forcing paula to keep him home from early years schooling for approximately half a year, as she feared him suffering bullying and didn't want to stress him back into being non-verbal.

while little was thought about it at the time, simon was mercilessly mocked by his father, and sometimes his brother - who'd merely copy his role model, regarding his late speech. between six and seven years old, certain specific and unique patterns in his behaviour became noticeable to his mother. he was also struggling to make friends in school and had a lack of interest in doing so. paula, originally, assumed it was something to do with the potential trauma he was exposed to via his father and she grew worried it'd impacted him developmentally.

simon was taken to a doctor which began the process of an asd ( autism spectrum disorder ) diagnosis. this would end up being a risky move on paula's part, as the diagnosis prompted a rise in rory's aggressive and cruel attempts to expose him to social events - forcing him to face fear-inducing situations head on. what he'd hoped to achieve was to make a man out of him, that enough exposure would knock the diagnosis right out of him. however, it's safe to say it only further traumatised him. rory would also frequently take simon to the local pub, the old duke inn, where he'd be forced to wait for some hours while his father conducted drug-related deals.

he would develop a close friendship with the bartender and owner, eoin hodgson, who'd keep him safe and distracted where he could. at eight years old, rory dragged simon to a rock concert. an inappropriate and unsuitable location for an eight year old, simon was exposed to violence, drugs and sexual conduct. left alone in the noise and a crowd of strangers by his father, simon attempted to pursue him ( as his only source of protection and safety ) only to discover rory in a toilet stall with a woman he'd overdosed.

she was dead. rory forced him to laugh about it, brushing it off and talking cruelly of the woman as though she was no real loss. simon would never recover from this event, with it acting as a final staw, prompting him to refuse to interact with or be near his father again. because of this, simon would take steps backwards in his speech development, and for some months he was selectively mute due to fear and anxiety. he never did talk about this trauma, his child-mind repressing it wholly. eventually, rory would push his luck and paula would finally decide to lock him out, forcing him to spend large chunks of time away from them.

unfortunately, with simon's shunning of him, he dug his claws into his brother tommy instead - exposing him to dangerous and threatening environments and drugs, and with tommy growing more and more jealous of simon and rory's perceived relationship, he became eager to please his father. he'd be led down the path of addiction, but still simon managed to avoid rory entirely.

over the following years, he would witness his mother's mental health decline as well as his younger brother's struggles. he felt pressured to take on the responsibility his father had abandoned, and did bits and pieces here and there for pocket money which he'd give to his mother, that'd be put towards food and much needed resources.

at fifteen, he took on a job ( illegally ) at the local grocery as an "apprentice" butcher, developing a safe platonic friendship with the butcher, ilan raz, who knew about simon's background and family difficulties. it meant simon could develop independence and allow him to earn more money.

the royal marines are the uk's commando force. as the royal navy's amphibious troops, they are elite fighters and are optimised for worldwide rapid response, capable of dealing with a wide spectrum of threats and security challenges.

they're able to be deployed globally without host nation support and can be projected from the sea, via royal navy amphibious ships, to conduct on-land ops. their origins can be traced back to the late 1600s and in more recent times, royal marine commandos have been deployed into afghanistan, playing a major part in the invasion of iraq in 2003.

the training involved to become a royal marine commando is one of, if not the, toughest military selection process in the world. prior to a 32-week recruit training process, they must undergo a gruelling initial series of training to be selected. this includes academic tests such as: reasoning, english language, numerical and mechanical comprehension.

they will also undergo a personal interview, fitness test, potential royal marines course ( prmc ), a three day course to assess the recruit's suitability for life in the royal marines as well as a gym test, which may involve a bleep test, press ups, sit ups, pulls ups, among various other fitness courses. weapons familiarisation, a 3-mile run, another gym test and a 'realities of training' presentation will all follow.

throughout this training, recruits will learn and develop vast amounts of knowledge and warfighting skills, for example: weapons handling, marksmanship, proficiency with a variety of different firearms and weapon systems, unarmed and armed close quarters combat ( cbc ) as well as develop elite physical fitness and mental resilience.

they learn about demolition, reconnaissance, small team tactics, small boat ops, breaching, raiding, direct action, SERE training ( survival, evasion, resistance, and escape ), fieldcraft skills ( camouflage and stalking ), survival skills, bushcraft, mountaineering, fast-roping ( helicopter ), abseiling, vertical assault, underwater escape among many other skills.

royal marine commandos can specialise in a number of varying roles upon completion of these courses after spending 1-2 years as a general duties rifleman at a unit. examples of some specialisations and different courses include: mountain leader, physical training instructor, assault engineer, royal marines police, sniper, medical assistant, pilot, recon operator, drill instructor, driver, clerk, signaller, combat intel, armourer and heavy weapons. they can also apply for swimmer canoeist / special boat service selection ( sbs ) or any other branch of uksf ( united kingdom special forces. )

all training exercises will be conducted on differing military skills on a regular basis also, such as development in mountain, arctic, jungle, amphibious and desert warfare. the best recruit to finish training is awarded the kings badge. commandos play a key role in dealing with manmade, humanitarian and naturally occurring crises, with missions varying from amphibious assaults and humanitarian aid to large scale combat ops.

capable of operating in a vast range terrains and climates, they can cope with the coldest to the hottest, with the most hostile jungles and highest mountains, always adapting where necessary to get the job done.

post-9/11, simon was inspired to join the military. during the approach to the legal age to apply, he worked at the aforementioned butcher shop alongside ilan, a former soldier - who only served to inspire him. seeking control in his life, when he reached fifteen years and nine months, he signed up to the royal marines.

he would proceed to train from pre-16 to 17 ( with written permission from his mother ), until he was legally allowed to be deployed for the first time at 18 years old. during that time, he was often away training and carrying out military duties.

back at home, his brother tommy developed an addiction to drugs - having been exposed to them via his father, and home-life was spiralling. it was a regular stressor for simon, being away and unable to help or intervene, despite it not being his responsibility. one trip home led to him learning his brother had stolen items form his mother in order to buy his drugs.

with no option but to track him down, he'd find him and be confronted by residents within the location tommy had been staying at, with them threatening his brother for scrounging off of them and their resources. he was forced to fight them off and help tommy escape. that was how many of his trips home would go, with them getting progressively worse until finally, once simon turned eighteen, he returned home to inform his father he had to leave and wasn't allowed in the household anymore.

when training, simon impressed his superiors and would go on to be awarded with the king's badge, as the best recruit. once legally deployed, simon would go on to serve as a royal marine commando for four years, not including the three years served pre-deployment - until he reached twenty-one years old.

by that point, he'd moved into a rented flat in london and tommy had met and married a woman called beth, who helped completely turn tommy around. simon would be his best man and the married couple would then announce their pregnancy.

nine months later and his nephew, joseph riley, was born. his time as a commando would earn him various medals, as well as a place in 40 commando, having gone on to specialise as a sniper after his first two years. 40 commando was a light infantry unit made up of some of the toughest marines in the royal navy - being deployed into even tougher and unforgiving terrains and climates.

as a specialist commando unit, 40 commandos undertake various operational tasks, such as: rapid reaction, amphibious warfare, arctic warfare, mountain warfare, expeditionary warfare, humanitarian support and disaster relief.

since its formation in 1942, 40 commando had served in every major british conflict, playing a vital role in several notable campaigns and ops, with the unit at the forefront of innovation going back to their roots as raiders from the sea, embracing new technologies to assist in their special ops around the world. trained for rapid worldwide deployment, the troops of 40 commando are highly skilled, adaptable and capable of combating a wide range of threats.

during the winter of 2007, after his nephew's birth, simon applied for sas selection, having been encouraged by his superiors, and he passed. in the royal marines, simon made it to the rank of sergeant due to impeccable skill earning him a quicker rise in rank than most.

the special air service ( sas ) is the british army's most renowned special forces unit and is famous around the world, specifically for the rescue mission carried out by them during the iranian embassy siege in london, 1980.

consisting of highly trained men recognised for their skills in cover surveillance, close-combat fighting and hostage rescue, the sas was created during the second world war - where small bands of soldiers were dropped behind enemy lines in north africa and europe. their motto is "who dares wins," and since 1941, they've been deployed into most of britain's wars.

their capabilities, what with recruiting from various branches within england, involve individual soldiers within a troop specialising in specific areas of warfare - such as the air troop, skilled in parachute insertions, the boat troop, specialising in amphibious operations, the mobility troop, a master of operations using a variety of vehicles and the mountain troop, an expert mountaineer and trained in the discipline of arctic warfare.

only the best of the best can pass the special air service's demanding and taxing selection process, with it being one of the toughest in any military worldwide. most fail the selection process, with an average intake of 125 candidates, the process will weed out all but 10. the phases include: 1) endurance, fitness and navigation, where candidates will test their physical fitness and mental stamina.

they spend three weeks in the brecon beacons and black hills of south wales, carrying a heavy bergen over a series of long timed hikes, having to navigate between checkpoints. the process ends with "the long drag", a 40 mile trek carrying a 55lb bergen, which must be completed in under 24 hours. the second phase includes: jungle training. those who passed phase one must endure phase two, where candidates learn the basics of surviving and patrolling harsh conditions. this training weeds out those who can't handle the discipline required to keep themselves and their kit in good condition, while also on long range patrol in difficult conditions.

the third phase is: escape, evasion and tactical questioning ( tq. ) this is the final phase of selection. the chance of a spec op going wrong behind enemy lines if entirely possible, meaning candidates must be able to have the wherewithal and spirit required to escape and evade capture, and resist interrogation should they fail this. the escape and evasion period lasts for three days, and then regardless of whether they were captured or not, all candidates report for tq.

the tactical questioning phase tests candidates ability to resist interrogation. they're treated roughly, often forced to stand in stress positions for hours as a time while being disorientated by white noise or distressing sounds. when their turn for questioning arises, they must answer the so-called "big 4" ( name, rank, serial number and date of birth. ) failure to resist interrogation results in the failing of the course. interrogators attempt various techniques to get a reaction from candidates, such as friendly behaviour, getting them chatting, harass and bombard them with negative and unfavourable remarks, mock and / or humiliate their anatomy among other methods.

once the phases are over, the small selection that make it through the process receive their beret and badge. post-selection training continues the same gruelling intensity, which in many ways never ends. the soldiers are constantly learning new skills and refining others already learned. the training includes: counter-terrorism training, CQB ( close quarter battle ), building assaults - which can involve abseiling down the side of buildings from the roof / onto rooftops from helicopters, gaining access via ladders and blowing access holes into the side of buildings with explosives.

tubular assaults are also included in the training, where trains, buses and coaches are taken into account, aircrafts assaults, and counter-terrorism exercises. typically, one sas patrol consists of 4 men, as aforementioned, where each has expertise in at least one specialised skill while being proficient in several others. patrol skills include: movement, camouflage, setting ambushes, anti-ambush drills, contact drills and emergency rendezvous skills.

simon riley served in the special air service for three years, after six years in the royal marines. after passing selection, simon attracted the attention of his superiors as a highly devoted, detached and dedicated soldier. at twenty-one years old, he was eager to prove himself to them. functioning as a specialist in amphibious warfare, he was teamed up and set to work alongside his new captain - braden hawkins.

the two would strike up a close, platonic bond, with simon largely viewing him as a father figure. hawkins was a livewire, simon found, completely unstable but that was what made him good. the mission came before anything else, and his captain was largely responsible for a portion of simon's skill and knowledge, making a point of training him to become the perfect soldier.

simon would go on to train with u.s special forces, which would highlight him to one later-mentioned major vernon. after two years, he was commissioned for the rank of lieutenant by hawkins, who'd since been promoted to the rank of major. this enabled him to go from training with u.s forces to actively training them, with simon assisting in training u.s navy seals at the age of twenty-three.

widely respected and highly reputable, he thrived within the environment and his friendship with hawkins proceeded to only grow, the two even surviving an asset's betrayal at one point.

in 2009, in early october, simon was approached by major hawkins who informs him that american special forces / delta force had requested the help of british special forces to capture manuel "el gordo" roba, the ceo of a mexican drug cartel in coahuila known for piping heroin across the border into the u.s. there was reliable intel suggesting he intended to expand into terrorist smuggling. feeling compelled to agree and abandon his own men shipping out to iran, simon reluctantly met with the mission's coordinator, major vernon - who was the only one of twelve to have survived the previous mission attempt.

vernon informed simon that he'd specifically requested him, having noticed him some years prior when he was a sergeant. simon travelled to fort bragg, north carolina, where he'd meet vernon in person to discuss the mission. it would be disclosed to him that the previous two missions were unqualified disasters and that he believed there was likely a rat leaking sensitive information back to roba. in early november, the squad would travel to coahuila, mexico, during el día de los muertos, the day of the dead.

this would enable them to pursue reconnaissance in disguise and potentially apprehend roba amid the chaos. however, unbeknownst to simon, vernon was the rat - having been brainwashed previously by roba, intent on supplying the drug lord with a range of skilled us and british soldiers to brainwash and use as his own servants, bettering his trade. who better to brainwash than the best the sas had to offer. with one of their team having already been killed, having had his parachute tampered with by vernon, simon met with his team - sparks and washington, with vernon and their other teammate cumberland nowhere to be found.

it was quickly discovered that roba had caught them and simon forced his way into the building to find cumberland in a tortured state. despite his best efforts, his teammate was executed by vernon himself who revealed his elaborate plan. simon managed to escape but was shot in the gut by roba, who had him collected and locked up. and so, simon's long stretch of brainwashing and torture began. for nine solid months, simon suffered torture to both the body and mind, with methods varying immensely.

there were a series of rooms utilised throughout his torture, alongside teammates sparks and washington who were much more susceptible to it than him, and these rooms ( simon was exposed to two of them, skipping the second and going to third due to his resilience ) consisted of either darkness with a single, red, blinking light or pleasant and soothing visuals and music alongside high doses of lsd. more about these torture methods and their after effects can be found here at meta 05.

roba's goal was to brainwash him into a loyal, mindless drone who'd accomplish objectives for him back in the uk, in order to further the progress of his drug trade.

however, simon withstood much of this torture, which led to roba trying different techniques. he was locked in a sweat box along with scorpions, suspended in the air via a large hook through his torso, forced to fight his fellow teammates and then told to kill them ( which he resisted ) and eventually, a prolonged series of sexual assaults overseen by roba and conducted by women per roba's demands.

by the end of these nine months, sparks and washington would inform him they'd discovered a skeleton key and could escape ( having been successfully brainwashed. ) when they couldn't free simon, he told them to leave and thus they would return to the u.s and leave him behind. at this point, roba had grown tired with simon's resilience, impressed by him but impatient nonetheless.

simon was then buried alive with vernon's corpse, who roba had had killed due to him no longer proving useful. he was forced to use vernon's rotting jawbone as a tool to escape, spending approximately thirteen hours in total digging back up to the surface.

left wandering the desert for around a month, simon would come to meet various individuals, namely liam bernal and zita delgado, who'd help him for a number of weeks before letting him go on. he would come to collapse to die, unaware he'd passed the border into texas, and was found by a cop and within a week of being found, simon was returned to the uk.

after he was returned to the uk, it would take simon four months to 'recover'. he suffered violent, intense nightmares and chronic pain - not to mention deep-rooted trauma that would come to affect his belief system, opinions as well as how he perceived himself. he mostly stayed with his mother in salford, enjoying the company of his brother, sister-in-law and nephew when they'd visit. having missed an entire ten months of his nephew's life, simon was keen to make up for it. his trauma made connecting with his family difficult, however.

after those four months, he attempted to return to his role and rank but was refused, informed he must speak to the on-site psychiatrist first and could only re-join once cleared for duty. towards the end of 2010, he would visit this psychiatrist, hopeful it'd be easy to persuade them. she couldn't be swayed though, perceptive of simon's façade, and suggested he take some prescribed medication. conflicted, believing that taking it would mean he was confessing to not being well, he took some time to think it over.

it was during this time that he was visited by sparks, the teammate he'd been tortured alongside in mexico - he'd survived and made it back to the us and was in the uk, staying at 'raf bonnington.' sparks invited him out for a celebratory drink on his survival, to which simon agreed, though it merely makes him increasingly aware that sparks had been successfully brainwashed and, with his new rank of captain, was intent on helping roba transport dangers into the u.s.

on the walk back to sparks's place, sparks would exhibit further disturbing behaviours such as attempting to r*pe a passing woman, which simon managed to discourage him from doing. he would then confront sparks regarding his attachment to roba and his ideals but got interrupted by washington who shot him in the leg. simon fled back to his home, intent on ensuring their safety but discovered they'd been massacred by washington in his absence.

it was this turn of events that had him consider suicide, the muzzle of his pistol perched between his lips. he didn't, and instead attempted to call major hawkins who he also learned had been 'killed', along with his psychiatrist, as part of a set up. determined not to give up and to find justice, he tried to confront sparks and washington but was stopped by them blowing up the residence, forcing him to go into hiding. it was covered on the news, dreadful articles painted him as a murdered, a solider 'gone off the rails', an unstable individual. they labelled him as 'the most dangerous man in britain.' he was just twenty-four years old, amid all the chaos.

he'd visit his father, who was sick with cancer at the christie cancer hospital in manchester, to seek answers regarding his past and childhood trauma. here, he'd learn of his repressed memories as a child of the woman his father had killed and that his father's demand for him to 'laugh' about it prompted him to find his family's massacre hysterical.

better understanding himself, he left his father at the hands of sparks and washington, who'd hunted him down to locate simon and killed him when he didn't reveal anything. by the end of the month, simon had secured a plan to locate sparks and washington at raf bonnington.

breaking into the facility, he killed washington in his bunk - making it look like sparks was responsible, and took sparks hostage back to his family home in salford. after interrogating him, he killed sparks and switched their tags prior to setting the property on fire.

"sas officer kills six and then himself" - simon was legally dead, with sparks's body being mistaken for his own. colonel barber, at bonnington, would find footage of simon infiltrating the facility and cover for him, suggesting it was a row over a woman that'd caused sparks to take washington out and that it was unrelated to the simon riley incident - halting officals from looking into it.

after his faked suicide, simon would wait for two months, performing recon and gathering intel before going after 'gilberto', the man responsible for his torture, in mexico. he waited six weeks for him to make an appearance in coahuila, taking him hostage to interrogate him for roba's whereabouts through torture similar to what he'd put him through.  with the necessary information obtained, he learned roba had moved to his summer home in the jungles of chiapas in southern mexico. surrounded by dangers and threats, on top of extreme property protection and armed guards, riley was forced to prep immensely for his visit.

when ready, he headed to chiapas, located roba and killed him without hesitation. this was something three government armies, countless outlaws, hitmen and even cartels had failed to do. not to mention having to face off with over thirty armed killers in a gunfight, which he survived. justice had been served, vengeance sought and achieved - but still, simon felt empty. unable to mourn or grieve, those close to him were gone in an instant and simon riley was dead to the world, and to himself.

post-roba, mid 2011, he was approached by 'colonel barber', who informed him that he knew of simon's extra-curricular activities, that he knew he was responsible for the disappearance of sparks and the death of washington and that if he didn't do what he was told, he'd be liable for prison.

naturally, being a legally dead man, simon was valuable to the uk's government, to its secret military organisations and confidential missions. barber offered simon a job - to continue serving in the sas but as an undercover operator, like an asset. thus, ghost was born and simon was blackmailed into continuing his work for the british military with a redacted past.

ghost was a persona simon created, influenced by his personal beliefs and trauma - having received next to no real therapy for what he suffered, simon experienced notable delusions regarding his status of being alive or dead. with his new identity, simon set to work creating a mask, originally choosing a simple balaclava with a skull jaw painted across the lower half, often alongside tinted eye protection.

ghost was, above all else, a tribute to simon riley. completely anonymous, he would even go on to relocate without informing the government, refusing military housing in the process and keeping his home a total secret. outside of work, simon became acquainted with a neighbour, ms siu, who he rescued from thieves. after this, he moved in with her, the two developing a son and mother-like dynamic and close bond.

he remained an undercover operator for the sas for approximately eight years, even rising to the rank of captain - which he rejected, remaining a lieutenant for the remainder of his time serving; preferring to work alone and with minimal responsibility regarding teamwork.

as time progressed, he'd develop his persona and came to don a skull face, essentially owning an entire wardrobe's worth of differently styled masks depending on the mission requirements (terrain, temperature etc), while also adapting military gear to match. dedicated to 'ghost', he built a formidable and feared reputation for himself, garnering respect from every soldier he crossed paths with. along with this came many rumours, which turned 'ghost' into somewhat of a 'mythical entity'.

ghost met mara in 2013, overseeing u.s special forces training - having been requested to assist alongside a handful of other sas operators in educating newer recruits. despite being a young cia asset, she was training alongside them to improve her skills and knowledge. these few weeks would end in a friendship striking up between them, with simon intrigued by her. they would part ways once training ended, but not before he'd given her some wise words.

they wouldn't meet again until late 2017, where mara lead the assassination of an al-qatala related high value target within moscow, with ghost delivering the fatal shot. fellow warcom operators accompanied her, including ghost. things would go wrong when their deceased target would be located and their presence would be compromised, with mara finding herself at risk of being disavowed should she fail to escape.

ghost decided to step up and help her safely escape and get back to base, but prior to this they were forced to hide out in the outskirts of moscow for three days as the enemy searched for them. after this, between 2018 and 2020, ghost would team up with mara various times for different missions, sometimes with it just being the two of them.

as a highly effective and successful duo, it was no surprise they were frequently paired up - especially because, while ghost wasn't one, he could essentially function and operate as a cia asset like mara, due to him being 'legally dead' which made him more exploitable than the average soldier. soon enough, a relationship started to blossom and build between them during the years they kept reuniting.

it was during one of these missions in 2019 that they slept together, and the dynamic that followed was on and off, unstable but persistent, though it never lasted due to each other's own personal traumas and issues. they would continue to remain good friends and are still paired up here and there, even crossing paths when verdansk comes under attack. only they know of what they've shared together.

mara and simon are both ghosts, legally deceased individuals who've suffered great trauma, loss and have had to move on from their past and families. they share great resemblance but equally vast differences, replicating yin and yang, where simon's risen from his ashes as a phoenix and has had his justice, unlike mara who remains stuck in the ashes, unable to achieve justice or even begin the path towards it. their fate is a tragedy, due to their pasts, but mara provides for simon in ways no one else can.

in 2019, ghost was contacted by captain john price and recruited into task force 141, a multinational spec ops unit. initially, he was tasked with tracking down victor zakhaev, son of imran zakhaev, on top of understanding why armistice operators were killing each other in verdansk, after a team (including mara - mentioned above) was assigned the task of locating and securing a chemical weapon.

in 2022, he was then tasked with leading the mission to assassinate 'general ghorbani', iran's quds force commander. the after-effects of this mission would be impactful, prompting ghorbani's right-hand, major hassan zayani, to step up with vengeance on his mind. towards the end of '22, ghost would be given the mission of leading a team of marsoc marines to capture / kill zayani. due to complications, hassan managed to escape and the team were faced with iran in possession of american missiles.

due to the mission's failure, ghost's job wasn't done and he would assist 141 further in securing the target, as well as the scattered missiles - three to be exact. towards the end of modern warfare ii, simon had been serving in the sas for approximately twelve years and 141 for an extra three years. the persona of ghost was eleven years old and he'd been a lieutenant for just over thirteen and a half years.

overall, simon had been in the military for twenty years (both deployed and not. ) with such a reputation behind him, it was no wonder 141 relied heavily on him to get the job done, with ghost bringing the series of missions full circle by triggering the death of ghorbani and then killing hassan himself.

more tba post-mwiii.

when it was learned that american missiles intercepted in the middle east were obtained by russian ultranationalists, the cia began deep diving into associates of imran zakhaev, the original leader of the ultranationalists, and discovered 'vladimir makarov' - a dedicated follower of zakhaev who'd been around for some time.

makarov was playing a large role in the ultranationalist terrorist group, aka konni group, acting as their current leader. he was seeking the suffering of the western world, intent on causing world war three through the use of dangerous and devastating chemicals.

task force 141 were tasked with intercepting enemies with connections to makarov in order to take him down quietly. enter sierra. her father, owner of a criminal organisation and known funder / associate of makarov, was a man of interest to the cia but they were wary of triggering his suspicions by invading his ranks, thus they decided to send someone to intercept his daughter's less accomplished business, evading scrutiny and obtaining evidence on him in the process.

enter ghost. liquidating her former, most trusted associate, he assumed the role of her bodyguard in order to obtain information and evidence on her father and intelligence on makarov.

known to her as "ghost" or "stanley roberts," he acted undercover, protecting her while securing aforementioned intel for the cia. due to him being legally deceased and working primarily within the sas as an undercover operative, he was the go-to for the mission. sierra would prove to be a challenge for ghost, originally discontent with the idea of having to have a bodyguard and thus feeling imprisoned and imposed upon.

she made it particularly difficult by attempting to disappear, though could never quite succeed in escaping him. the longer they were exposed to one another, along with more and more life-threatening and sometimes traumatic events / attacks, they were forced to grow closer.

ghost was a highly successful individual in his job, managing to keep sierra alive and safe where possible, and although he could maintain an emotional disconnect and remain on task, he did notice similarities between sierra and his deceased brother, tommy - which made their time together more complex. sierra herself would grow more protective over stanley as time passed.

inevitably, the more they were together the closer they seemed to become, with sierra wholly unaware that once his mission was over, he'd vanish into thin air without an explanation, warning or goodbye.